Enough is enough – why the EU needs sufficiency to thrive

By Patricia Urban and Luca Nipius

We are depleting our planet’s finite resources at a dangerous pace, driven largely by overconsumption in the Global North. This fuels emissions, pollution and biodiversity loss, despite efficiency gains. And regardless of lower net emissions, EU consumption shifts environmental harm abroad, worsening global inequities.

Buildings and transport are central to this crisis. On the one hand, they’re crucial for people’s lives. On the other, the EU construction industry consumes 1.8 billion tonnes of raw materials – a third of the bloc’s total – and generates 330 million tonnes of waste annually. Meanwhile, transport emissions, particularly from road transport, account for nearly a quarter of EU emissions. This relentless resource use pushes us past planetary boundaries, threatening the Earth’s capacity to sustain life.

Of course, those who consume the least often suffer the most from its consequences. In housing, unequal access is stark, with the cost-of-living crisis exacerbating disparities. Similarly, poorer EU regions still often lack access to public transport.

We are facing an interlinked social-ecological challenge: lowering resource consumption and environmental impacts while addressing social inequalities. Efficiency and renewable energy are vital, but they’re not enough. We must embrace sufficiency.

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